Firefighter Killed In Major Wisconsin Gas Explosion That Leveled Buildings

posted by Bill Galluccio -

Jul 11, 2018

A massive gas main explosion leveled buildings in downtown Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, leaving one person dead and over a dozen injured. Authorities said that Sun Prairie Fire Department Captain Cory Barrwas killed inside Barr House, a tavern that he owned, after a contractor accidentally struck a 4-inch gas main, creating a major leak that eventually led to the explosion that rocked the downtown area of the city, just a few miles from Madison.

Five other firefighters, two police officers, and seven bystanders were also injured in the blast. One of the firefighters is in critical condition and remains in the hospital.

Barr served as a volunteer firefighter in Sun Prairie for ten years and worked as a real estate agent, along with owning his own restaurant, which was destroyed in the blast. He is survived by a wife and two daughters.

“Trying to find the words, and not sure how I can. The husband, the father of my children, a son, an uncle, a brother, and so many other things was taken from this world tonight way too soon,” Barr's wife Abby wrote on Facebook according to WISC-TV.